Harry Potter and the Living Room of My Childhood

Whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.

– J.K. Rowling

Ask anyone who has read Harry Potter and they will be able to tell you how the magic of the story has impacted their life. I am no different.

I have always been a “daddy’s girl” but never really had a great relationship with my mom. We used to butt heads a lot when I was growing up and had a lot of arguments which ended in my mom being even more frustrated and me being in tears. When I wasn’t making my mom mad about something, we had a normal mother-daughter relationship: she’d nag at me to do my chores, I’d do my homework while she cooked dinner. Things would always be okay until I upset her again.

I was almost 7 years old when “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” was released. I don’t remember how it began but my mom and I started reading the book together, a little bit every Wednesday when dad would be gone for a few hours. We would curl up on the couch with the book and read through a few chapters. Chapter by chapter we went through Harry’s ups and downs, from his miserable childhood with the Dursleys, to going to Hogwarts and making new friends. My mom would give some of the characters voices and she would make some of the noises, like Hagrid breaking down the door (*CRASH!*) or a broomstick flying through the air (*WHOOSH!*).

Every voice she did and every noise she made would always make me laugh and sometimes we would just reread some sentences just so that we could keep laughing. As the series got longer, we kept reading. My mom and I read the first 4 books together; and each book, for a short time, brought something truly magical to our boring living room. These moments of pure happiness with my mom is what drove me towards my love of books.

Once a week, my mom read Harry Potter to me and we were guaranteed a full night of no arguing or frustration. Once a week my mom and I went on new adventures and in those moments I swear it felt like we were walking down the halls of Hogwarts. These are some of my happiest memories with my mom from my childhood and that is something I will never be able to thank J.K. Rowling for!

Everyone has their own reasons for loving this world but it’s safe to say that J.K. Rowling has changed millions of lives with this story. We have grown up with Harry and Harry will stay with us forever.

[This guest post has been written by Emily Grace. A resident of New Hampshire, USA, Emily is a bookstagrammer by day and a dispatcher for the local police, fire, and emergency services by night. She has a BFA in photography.]